Birnau

Birnau, sometimes called the most beautiful church in the world, relocated on the shores of Lake Constance due to an argument about the previous site being a loss-maker for a nearby inn. And it really is beautiful. A pilgrimage church dedicated to the Virgin Mary and linked to the monastery at Salem, populated by Cistercian monks. You can't help but look up once in there, and tucked away in one corner of a ceiling painting is a man with a look of despair, a crutch and two paintbrushes. This was a self portrait of the artist who broke his leg while painting the ceiling.